Lions and Legislators

Lions and Legislators

By Chloe Opelt

Although State Affairs and Legislative seem similar to some delegates, they are “actually quite different,” according to Claudia Huffman, a State Affairs delegate. State Affairs and Legislative delegates have weighed in on this topic, providing their opinions and knowledge of their duties at the YAG State Conference.

The similarities between the State Affairs and Legislative sections “mostly revolve around the debates,” according to Huffman.

“There are a lot of people that are very passionate about what they believe in and they like to debate as much as they can to get their voice out there,” she said. However, “they’re pretty much separate things,” she said.

Huffman mentioned “partners, a visual example, and pro-con debate speeches.” State Affairs proposals also pertain only to the state of Texas, while legislative bills concern all states, not just Texas. “State Affairs is a little more calm compared to legislative; sometimes [legislative students are] like lions at your throat,” said Huffman. “State Affairs can get like that too, not as often as Legislative though,” she said.

Wathila Ekanayake, a Legislative delegate, explained that Legislative and State Affairs are similar in that they “debate bills, make amendments, argue the pros and cons, and pass it based on the arguments made.”

“I feel like in legislative, when people are defending their ideas, they get really passionate and start to yell into the microphone,” said Ekanayake when asked about the severity of tones and volumes in the legislative sessions.

While the core processes of State Affairs and Legislative are similar, “they are very different things,” according to Huffman. “We have different ways of getting stuff done,” said Huffman as she expanded on her previous sentence. Huffman finished by stating that “they’re two separate groups for a reason.”